We
left Hangzhou early
this morning for the Qiantang River. Our tour firm, Journeys
Worldwide, and the
AAQ identified our vantage point two years previously on
the banks of the Qiantang River which offered a clear vantage
point to the west - i.e. of the Eclipse - in an otherwise fairly
populated and built up region on Chinas coast.

The weather was ominous - much more so than Ceduna in 2002
and Libya in 2006, although things had gone our way on these
occasions. Not this time.

Only the call of an astronomer with an eye on the clock alerted
the congregation to First Contact and the start of the partial
phases.

We hoped. And prayed. And hoped a little more. OK - we hoped
a lot more.

The clouds thinned and a roar went up - eyes fixated upon
a single thinning spot behind which partial phase was barely
visible.

The clouds thickened again and a sense of dark resignation
set it.

As totality approached, the birds went wild and began their
preparations for night. The sounds from the wildlife beginning
preparations reached a crescendo as the atmosphere cooled and
the sky darkened.

At second contact, the crowd roared and applauded and, slowly,
quietness set in on the Qiantang Front. The cloud cover plunged
us beyond totality and into what could so easily have been
nighttime. 5 minutes and 40 seconds of darkness.

Third contact was called. The disappointment of no corona,
no bailey beads, no shadow bands, the disapperence of the trips
raison d'etre began to set in.

Not seeing totality didn't dampen the spirits of the nearby,
newly deflowered "eclipse virgins" who remained overexcited
at the experience of not having seen totality. If they think
this was good - they should try it for real. Unclouded. Unfettered.

Ominous and eerie though the clouded enhanced darkness was,
when it comes to totality - accept no substitutes.

About Mark Sukhija

Mark Sukhija is a travel and wine blogger, photographer, tourism researcher, hat-touting, white-shirt-wearing, New Zealand fantatic and eclipse chaser. Aside from at least annual visits to New Zealand, Mark has seen eclipses in South Australia (2002), Libya (2006), China (2009) and Queensland (2012). After twelve years in Switzerland, Mark moved back to London in 2012. You can follow Mark on Twitter or Facebook